Early years child development training
The Early years child development training is an online programme that is free to access. It has been designed by early years professionals to help early years educators strengthen their knowledge and understanding of child development.
Module 8: Supporting individual differences and needs now available and covers:
- an introduction to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) legislation and guidance, and how it applies to education practice
- the impact of knowledge and learning gaps on children’s development and what action to take, including making a referral when needed
- the importance of your role in supporting children’s individual differences and needs, how to create an inclusive environment and build effective partnerships
This new module is now available along with 7 other modules focusing on key areas of child development.
You can complete the modules in any order, at any time. Sign in to the training and visit the My modules page to access this new module. If you haven’t yet accessed the training, you can register by visiting Early years child development training.
Early Years SEND assessment guidance and resources
The new DfE Early Years SEND assessment guidance and resources, developed by Dingley’s Promise, are now available on the Help for Early Years Providers platform. They have been created to support a child-centred, strengths-based approach to assessing children’s needs and sharing their progress and learning with parents, carers and professionals.
There is practical advice on assessment, alongside tools and downloadable resources to support you in assessing what children with SEND can do, capturing their voice, and setting targets for progress and learning.
The guidance and resources follow the SEND Code of Practice and align with Early Years Foundation Stage assessment policy. They use best practices and evidence-based methods to provide you with practical advice to meet the needs of children with SEND in your care.
Catherine McLeod, CEO of Dingley's Promise -“This assessment toolkit was developed for the Department for Education in partnership with a range of settings, local authorities, and early years experts. We hope that every local authority and setting will adopt this process, so that children, families, and practitioners will be confident that needs are being identified and met as early as possible, regardless of where they live in the country”.
Learn more about this training